Teaching Mathematics to Struggling Learners: Fractions focuses on diagnosing and addressing student difficulties and developing mathematical content knowledge for teaching in the area of fractions.
TMSL: Fractions Course Goals
Participants will:
- Understand research-based strategies and best practices for struggling learners in mathematics
- Analyze and apply the Specially Designed Instruction (SDI) resource, Do the Math: Fractions A, B, and C
- Analyze and experience diagnostic assessment
- Understand and practice how to use Michael Battista’s Cognition-Based Assessment of Fractions as a diagnostic assessment
- Understand how to use embedded formative assessment (Do the Math Show What You Know) to guide instruction and make students aware of their own learning
- Understand the following components of fractions by analyzing the Common Core progressions document and solving related problems
- Equivalent fractions
- Unit fractions
- Comparing fractions
- Adding and subtracting fractions
- Multiplying and dividing fraction
- Understand and practice the use of various models of representation in the teaching of fractions
- Review the purpose of teacher think-alouds for the teaching of fractions and problem types, and then practice this instructional strategy
- Understand and practice fluency assessment and fluency instruction
- Understand the Concrete-Representational- Abstract (CRA) Approach and apply to the teaching of mathematics in their classrooms
- Identify and analyze salient features in different problem types
- Apply schema-based instruction to the teaching of problem types